A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an enclosure for trapping dry ice, and more particularly, the present invention relates to a novelty enclosure for trapping dry ice in a drinking glass.
B. Description of the Prior Art
Dry ice—solidified CO2—is commonly available in block form and pellets in many grocery stores, as well as other locations. It is commonly used in shipping perishable items and for cooling beverages. Because dry ice changes state directly to a gas—instead of first to a liquid as does regular ice—when used to cool beverages it does not dilute.
Numerous innovations for drinking vessels have been provided in the prior art that will be described infra. Even though these innovations may be suitable for the specific individual purposes to which they address, however, they differ from the present invention in that they do not teach a novelty enclosure for trapping dry ice in a drinking glass.
(1) U.S. Pat. No. 4,938,375 to Fantacone.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,938,375 issued to Fantacone on Jul. 3, 1990 teaches an ice trap including a trapping device and beverage cup combination. The trapping device has a plurality of openings, a conical shaped side section, a rim, a compression gap, and compressing tabs for inserting, locking in, and removing the trapping device. The trapping device also has a bottom section with a downward pitch for ice containment near the inner cup wall when tilted, and, a center bottom opening in the bottom section for inserting a straw. The beverage cup has an internal annular lip formed from the inwardly sloping wall, and, an annular horizontal bottom surface included beneath the lip for locking the trapping device in place.
(2) U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,534 to Webb et al.
Another example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,534 issued to Webb et al. on Jul. 7, 1998 teaches a beverage container in the form of an aluminum can having a top plate in which a dispensing aperture is formed by pulling a tab so as to inwardly displace a tongue portion. Filtering apparatus is resiliently mounted within the container so as to be deployed at a location traversing the dispensing aperture after the tongue portion has been inwardly displaced. The filtering apparatus may be a perforate plate and may have perforations defining a competition visual indication whereby the token becomes visible only after the container is opened.
(3) U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0035144 to Nielsen.
Still another example, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0035144 published to Nielsen on Feb. 26, 2004 teaches a drinking vessel including an interior portion holding pellets or chips of dry ice that cool a beverage in the glass while the beverage is being consumed. The interior portion can be a part of the glass or it can be a detached piece usable in different vessels. Either way the interior portion includes holes that allow the beverage to freely flow around the dry ice, while the holes are small enough to prevent the dry ice from entering the portion of the vessel where it could be accidentally consumed.
It is apparent that numerous innovations for drinking vessels have been provided in the prior art that are adapted to be used. Furthermore, even though these innovations may be suitable for the specific individual purposes to which they address, however, they would not be suitable for the purposes of the present invention as heretofore described, namely, a novelty enclosure for trapping dry ice in a drinking glass.